


A Cat's Purrsuasion

by pareidoliaticspume



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Ensemble Cast, Kenma and Akaashi Rivalry, Kuroo and Bokuto Rivalry, M/M, More characters and relationships are present but not prominent, Political Alliances, Slow Burn, future smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-10
Updated: 2017-12-10
Packaged: 2019-02-12 18:55:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12966168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pareidoliaticspume/pseuds/pareidoliaticspume
Summary: Long-time rivals, the Karasuno and Nekoma kingdoms, have decided to forge an alliance. Fifth Prince of Karasuno, Kozume Kenma, always having felt like an outsider in Karasuno, decides to travel to Nekoma to marry First Prince of Nekoma, Kuroo Tetsurou. Enmity brews between him and the visiting General Akaashi Keiji of Fukurodani when Kenma actively avoids his duties after being given the title of Prince of Nekoma while Akaashi works hard at his post and continues to be denied the title of Prince of Fukurodani. Yaku tries to inspire Kenma to stand up for himself, Kuroo slaves over both his and Kenma's work, and Bokuto offers himself up as Akaashi's warrior to help him prove himself.





	A Cat's Purrsuasion

With the middle of winter came the end of the treaty negotiations between the kingdoms of Karasuno and Nekoma. The green King of Karasuno sat across the wizened King of Nekoma, pleased with the result. Nekoma’s king revealed nothing with his eternal thin smile, while officials from both kingdoms muttered discontentedly amongst themselves at the long table between the two rulers. The rest of the Karasuno royal family watched impassively and dispatched a courier with the updated news. She was quite happy to leave the crows’ snowy mountains and return to the arid cat desert. The three Nekoma princes received the news together and Yaku congratulated Kuroo on signing away his future for the sake of the kingdom. The once isolationist Karasuno was going to open its doors to its ancient rivals, Nekoma. In exchange for peace and free access to Nekoma’s trading ports, Karasuno was to send over someone from their royal family and a top military general. Karasuno had only one stipulation, one of them would have to marry Nekoma’s first prince, Kuroo Tetsurou.

* * *

Tetsurou stood atop a tower of Nekoma castle holding the most recent letter about the treaty. Karasuno had chosen their fifth prince, Kozume Kenma, as his partner. They were still indecisive on which general to sacrifice, so they were all coming. Today was the day of the scheduled arrival and Tetsurou’s wedding. He watched as the imposing black of Karasuno’s carriages weaved through the parade of Nekoma’s warm reds and oranges. When the occupants finally disembarked, Tetsurou scanned the envoy for his future spouse. The letter had come with a sketch of the fifth prince, a bland, forward-facing portrait that the prince seemed very disinterested in sitting for. Tetsurou wasn’t willing to make any judgements from it; his own had looked horrendous. It featured squinted, beady eyes and a crooked smirk when he was only trying to smile.The artist had make him look like a creep! He hoped Karasuno would discard it entirely. The only thing he noted in the picture he received was the odd shading the artist had done on the prince’s head. The courier had informed him that the prince had a unique coloration to his hair, black near the top of his head with yellow strands framing his face. It was this feature that Tetsurou was keeping an eye out for, but Karasuno had come in partially-proper desert clothing and their hoods, designed to keep the sun out, betrayed no yellow amongst the black of their garb.

Tetsurou tried his best to keep in his laughter. What he had hoped would be a solemn initial meeting could very well be ruined if he laughed like a maniac in front of Karasuno. While he commended them on creating Nekoma-style clothing suited for the hot weather, they had made the bad choice of wearing their kingdom’s colors. Their many thin layers swayed in the breeze like black jellyfish swimming in a waterless sea.

The desert wind blew past the carriages, dislodging some of the entourage’s head coverings. Black hair waved in the wind and in an instant Tetsurou spotted golden hair before it disappeared again in a flash. He watched as the person he identified as Prince Kozume quickly snatched up the large rectangle of woven wool that tried to escape him and haphazardly replaced it over his head. A guy with a blonde mohawk placed his own hat on top and the odd setup survived the next gust of wind that passed them. Prince Kozume turned away from him, looking down at the ground; half of Tetsurou was impressed by Prince Kozume’s quick reflexes and the other half was cooing over his shy behavior. Even with the hat, he was holding onto the sides of his cover, refusing to show his face. So, his future husband was modest and easily embarrassed, huh? How cute~ Tetsurou grinned, imagining sliding down the stairs right now and appearing in front of the prince with a rose he’d manage to somehow create from nothing to present to him, and the prince would blush and smile and be utterly charmed.

* * *

“The weather here is awful…” Kenma frowned and hid his face from the dust swirling in the wind. Taketora slammed his palm into Kenma’s back and told him to just enjoy being out of the endless snow. Kenma shot him a glare, but thanked him for the hat nonetheless. Taketora’s willingness to give the hat away so easily with the sun beating down made Kenma think he was just looking for an excuse to show off his more unique looks, and he knew Kenma wouldn’t complain. On the contrary, Kenma was feeling far cooler than he expected. He turned to Suga, thanking him for the idea to create traditional Nekoma attire. He would have died if they’d followed Taketora’s and Ryuu’s original idea of barging in in their full, albeit intimidating, set of Karasuno furs.

Taketora was the only one closest to take offense, but Suga laughed over his annoyance. “I researched a lot about Nekoma!” he said brightly. Suga was one of the few who had truly been looking forward to the trip. Taketora and Ryuu were in the opposite camp, and Daichi had unfortunately chosen Taketora as the person to map out the path they would take. He managed to take them through the longest route possible to delay their arrival, but failed to share a carriage with any of the princesses during any of it. Instead, he was stuck with an irritated Kenma the entire time, who did not miss an opportunity to complain or make fun of him.

“I wish Taketora researched too, his stupid path was painful.”

“Huuuh?” Taketora got closer to Kenma, threatening to get into his face. Kenma faced him head on, pulling up his shirt.

“Look at how many bruises I got because of you!”

Ryuu, either smelling an opportunity to take off his shirt or show off bruises, slid into the conversation, removing his own garment. “Yeah, the road was pretty bad, huh? Look at this big one I got!”

Suga, willing to laugh at Taketora initially, reached his last straw when Ryuu got indecent. He hit both Kenma and Ryuu, admonishing them for being such free-wheeling exhibitionists in a foreign country.

* * *

In Tetsurou’s daydream, he had finally caught a glimpse of a sliver of Kozume’s skin as his shirt rode up while he stretched. The slamming of the tower door jolted him out in time to see Kozume pulling his shirt down. Tetsurou stalled for a moment as the prince in his daydream bashfully pulled his shirt down too before he turned to face Yaku marching toward him, already in the midst of a scolding about wasting time daydreaming.

“There’s way too much to get done for the crown prince to be making silly faces at Karasuno from above. What was that look anyway? You looked like you wanted to devour the poor crows,” Yaku ranted as he dragged Tetsurou down the tower’s stairwell. “I hope you don’t scare them off with your weird behavior or the giant bags under your eyes. The makeup needed to cover those alone will take hours,” he said just as they passed a hall of servants setting up the dining area.

Tetsurou grabbed a silver plate as they walked by, examining himself closely. “You don’t think that’s true right? Who am I kidding, one look at me and they’ll all run away because of my weird face and stupid hair.” Tetsurou pulled at his standing locks, trying frantically to pat them down and only succeeding in making it look worse.

Yaku looked at him in mild surprise; all Tetsurou had displayed up until now was his calm and cool exterior. He sighed and took away the plate. “They won’t, don’t worry. If they didn’t reject everything after seeing that silly portrait that got sent, nothing will deter them.”

Tetsurou ran a hand through his hair and replaced his smooth persona. “Yeah, you’re right. Hey, have you managed to get a good look at my fiancé yet?”

“Yeah, but,” Yaku shrugged, “Alisa’s still the prettiest in the kingdom, so doesn’t matter.”

“Oi, you take that back. I’m not allowing such talk around here. Anyway, don’t you prefer short hair?”

Yaku turned to him and smirked. “Our new prince grew his hair out during the trip.”

“Oho.”

* * *

The Karasuno procession came through the main castle doors with much fanfare and a bit of confetti (courtesy of Lev). They broke off into two main groups, and Tetsurou passed the main hall just in time to see the new prince approaching, flanked by three other officials and four guards. As Yaku fussed about getting an announcer to make an official introduction, Tetsurou instantly took long strides toward Prince Kozume. Yaku was introduced properly as Nekoma’s third prince to Karasuno’s second prince (a calm looking guy with a shock of silver hair) while Tetsurou took matters into his own hands and slinked in close to stand right in front of Prince Kozume.

“Hello there.”

Prince Kozume looked up to glance at his face before jumping slightly and looking back down. “Uh, hi.” His head cover concealed his eyes and Tetsurou bent down to see his eyes shifting back and forth. Before he could get any closer, he was blocked by one of the guards.

Tetsurou stood straight back up to look at a blond guard standing tall and looking down at Tetsurou the best he could manage with the small, but significant height advantage. With a tight smile and pinched eyes containing no mirth behind his glasses, he asked, “Do you have any business with the prince?”

Tetsurou gave him an equally unhappy grin and said, “Yes, just wondering when the rest of Karasuno will be going back home.”

A short guard with a shock of orange hair jumped up at Tetsurou to catch his attention. “I’m going to be staying here with Kenma!”

Tetsurou turned his grin toward the new member of the conversation. Everyone from Karasuno seemed to have such unique hair colors. Before he could say a thing, a guard with dark hair and an even darker expression barked at the orange guard. “Dumbass, we haven’t decided yet.” The orange crow piped down until the black crow added, “Besides, I trained for this, I’m staying,” and Tetsurou half expected to see feathers flying as the two fought, each confident they would be the best person for the job.

The blond guard grinned at the ridiculous display they made and said, “You know, we were planning to leave two guards with the prince.”

The two stopped fighting and looked at him. The tiny one’s eyes widened slowly with realization. “Really, Tsukishima?”

Tsukishima turned to the last guard, a nervous boy with freckles. “Yamaguchi, are you okay with abandoning these idiots with the job?”

“Uh…” Yamaguchi looked to the second prince for guidance.

The second prince sighed. “Kageyama and Hinata will stay with Kenma.”

As they cheered, Tetsurou nudged Yaku with an elbow and whispers, “And you were worried about formalities.”

The second prince turned back to Yaku. “I’m sorry about all of that.” He then looked up at Tetsurou and gave a slight bow. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am the second prince of Karasuno, Sugawara Koushi. Unfortunately, our fifth prince is feeling a little ill from the trip and needs rest. If you would excuse us.”

“No, no, please. We must apologize for holding you up.” Yaku ground his foot into Tetsurou’s until he apologized too. Both Yaku and Sugawara bowed and apologized until the Karasuno procession was out of sight.

Tetsurou laughed. “You know, with all of that apologizing, you look like a real dignitary.”

Yaku jabbed at Tetsurou again. “That was the point.”

“You should be friendlier with them; we’re going to be family soon!”

* * *

Kenma slid into the main ballroom after his nap, still blinking sleep from his eyes and fully willing to skip the rest of the day if given the chance. While the rest of Karasuno royalty was willing to make concessions for him out of gratefulness, Nekoma’s views on the matter were completely reversed. By all accounts, he was benefitting greatly: princehood in Nekoma, a direct connection to the future king, and someone required by law to be on his side. Be it at Karasuno or Nekoma, Kenma didn’t really have a preference, but he had only become a prince at Shouyou’s insistence. At the very least, his friend would be able to stay with him. After Shouyou had confirmed it with Daichi, he was all too willing to help out in the setup for the wedding. He and his guard friends were all joining in under the supervision of Daichi, Suga, and two of Nekoma’s princes. Kenma had memorized the names and faces of as many of the Nekoma officials as he could manage and he identified the princes as Second Prince Nobuyuki Kai and Third Prince Yaku Morisuke. The first prince, who was to be his husband, was off to the side, inspecting the guards’ work a little too closely for Tsukishima’s comfort. Kenma discreetly hid under his hood.

* * *

Kei glanced at Prince Kuroo and leaned in toward Hinata, who was closest. “I don’t like that guy, he’s too sketchy.”

Hinata squinted at the prince. “He draws?”

Kei dropped his work in exasperation. Prince Kuroo took this moment to slink closer, smirk stretched wider than should be allowed. “You know, with your quality of work, some people might think you don’t want the wedding to go well.”

Kei put an arm around Hinata’s shoulders to stop him from escaping. “Excuse him, he’s new.”

Hinata was too focused on Prince Kuroo’s face to pay attention to the jab. He poked his head out from behind Kei and whispered, “Who’s smile is scarier, his or Kageyama’s?”

“Neither, his is just creepy.” Prince Kuroo wasn’t close enough to hear Kei’s low voice, but his superiors were. Prince Yaku laughed with Prince Suga following his lead, but Prince Daichi was not pleased. Kei looked away as he was scolded and spotted Prince Kenma standing off to the side. Instantly recognizing his out, he shouted, “There’s Prince Kenma!” and fled in the opposite direction when everyone turned toward the prince. Yamaguchi moved to follow him, apologizing to Prince Kuroo as he went. This, unfortunately, brought Hinata’s attention back to him.

“Ah, Tsukishima! Don’t slack off!”

“Don’t yell so loud, dumbass,” came Kageyama’s automatic reply and Kei walked away faster.

* * *

Tetsurou laughed at the chain reaction. “This is going to be a lively wedding.” He approached the supervising princes and smiled. “Excuse me for not introducing myself sooner. I am Kuroo Tetsurou, First Prince of Nekoma, The Panther, Lord of the Western Desert, and Defender of the Realm.” He looked curiously around at the hushed silence that surrounded him until the First Prince of Karasuno offered his hand and introduced his companions.

Guard Hinata faced him head on, conviction drawing him out from his nervous hiding. “Are you the person who wants to marry Kenma?”

Tetsurou smiled, standing tall over Guard Hinata as he spoke. “I don’t think I have a lot of information about you two. Why do you talk about Prince Kozume so informally?” He leaned over Guard Hinata. “Is there a special relationship between you two?”

Tetsurou could see the fear whirling in the young crow’s eyes as he gave a nervous smile and sputtered negatives, growing redder the longer Tetsurou allowed him to continue.

Suddenly Prince Kozume popped out from behind him, focused solely on Guard Hinata. “Shouyou, are you okay?”

Guard Hinata squawked at the sight of him. “I-I’m fine!”

“Mm.” Prince Kozume nodded and then turned to the Nekoma princes. “Excuse me for my earlier rudeness,” he said, bowing his head down slightly. “I am the Fifth Prince of Karasuno, Kozume Kenma.” The longer Prince Kozume held his head in that position, the more Tetsurou suspected it was just an excuse to avoid eye contact. “The journey was rougher than I expected and I would have collapsed if I didn’t go lie down.”

The little guard piped up in his defense, “Kenma was sick in the carriage!”

“Don’t worry about it,” Tetsurou said as he ruffled Guard Hinata’s hair. “I hadn’t been expecting to see you before the ceremony regardless.”

Prince Kozume nodded and pulled Guard Hinata out of Tetsurou’s grasp. Tetsurou noticed as the prince quietly slipped their hands together and used it to tug Guard Hinata behind him. He finally made eye contact with Tetsurou, staring him down with a fierce expression and piercing eyes. “If you’re truly planning to be my husband, then never antagonize my friends again.”

The Karasuno procession left as Tetsurou was frozen in place and only Kai and Yaku were present to watch as the two generals from Karasuno, Tanaka and Yamamoto, made gestures to show that they were keeping an eye on Tetsurou.

* * *

After Tetsurou had destroyed several centerpieces with his mindlessness, Yaku had banned both him and the incurably clumsy Lev to the corner table where their guests from Fukurodani were playing a card game. Lev joined Bokuto, Akaashi, and Konoha to make four as Tetsurou stared blankly into space.

“I met my future husband,” Tetsurou said to no one in particular.

“What was he like?” Bokuto asked as he slammed down the winning card.

Tetsurou idly tilted his head toward where the losing players were in dismay.

“He could destroy me and I’d enjoy it.”

* * *

Nekoma Kingdom spared no expense for the wedding of its first prince. The entire castle was abuzz with activity as over the span of one afternoon, they erected a massive steel skeleton. Poles rose from the edges of the courtyard and bent to meet each other and create a dome. Two little rooms were created on either side for the grooms to prepare in.

Dusk draped itself over the kingdom as servants set heavily embroidered curtains over the poles, forming a covering. Paper lanterns lit the courtyard, stock still under Nekoma’s oppressive heat. Lev bemoaned the lack of a cool breeze and Yaku was inclined to agree with him even as he chastised him for wishing for wind that would likely knock the lanterns over. He went to Kuroo’s changing area where servants were fanning hot air into his face.

“Five minutes left, are you done?”

The earring Kuroo was trying to adjust slipped out of his fingers. “Yaku! Get into position before you make me bleed.”

Yaku held his hands up as he retreated back under the dome to where the royals were positioned around a central dias. The officiant fussed around on top of it, adjusting a white sheer drape that hung from the ceiling and surrounded the dais. He could hear shouts from the Karasuno side of the changing rooms and kindly ignored them as he and Prince Sugawara shared apologetic smiles. They inched closer to each other. He knew they shouldn’t break formation but…

* * *

Yaku and Suga scurried back to their positions as fanfare announced the arrival of the princes. They walked in from opposite ends and made their way to the central dais as music followed their every step. Karasuno’s attending princess and princes stood tall along the carpeted walkway in front of Kenma. Their attendants stood behind them, waving or making faces at Kenma as he passed. Kenma ignored them, completely focused on making it to the dais and to the prince walking toward him. Kuroo wore robes of white and red, thick ceremonial coat dragging behind him. Kenma had dressed in robes of black and red and was threatening to drown in his feathered coat. The kingdoms had coordinated beforehand and Nekoma had chosen gold highlights, while Karasuno chose silver. Yaku rolled his eyes as Kuroo approached him in layers of gold jewelery, chains swooping around his ears and over his head, forcing his hair flat. Inuoka had convinced Kuroo to abandon the necklaces and anklets -as they would have been covered by clothes- only to stand at Kai’s side now in an open shirt, displaying them himself.

Suga sighed as Kenma tottered between maintaining an unnaturally straight back and being bent over backwards by his coat. He had chosen to abandon his silver feather accessories, but when the coat started to shed feathers as he walked, Suga figured it was for the best.

* * *

Kuroo stopped by Kai to hand him his coat and whispered to Yaku, “That’s not long hair,” gesturing to where the Karasuno prince had his freely hanging hair cut at his jaw.

“It’s long to me,” came Yaku’s instant need to defend himself.

“Of course, everything must be huge to you.”

* * *

Despite the small scuffle on the Nekoma side, both princes arrived at the dais at the same time. The low hanging canopy bumped into Kuroo’s head when he stood straight up and he was forced to crouch down as Kenma climbed onto the small platform. Bent down and in tight quarters surrounded by translucent cloth, Kuroo could almost imagine they were alone until the magistrate started talking. Kenma could barely hear what they were saying as he focused on not passing out from a mixture of anxiety, heat, and Kuroo staring down at him.

Kuroo greeted him as if it was the first time they met, hand over his heart and failing to have any poise as he continued to avoid hitting the canopy overhead. “Hello, Kuroo Tetsurou, nice to meet you.”

Kenma’s eyes darted before he took a breath and spoke softly. “Hi. Kozume Kenma.”

Kenma stiffened as Kuroo reached around him to take off his coat. The feathers flew into their faces when the coat hit the ground. Kuroo pulled a feather out of Kenma’s hair. “It’s my pleasure to see you here, Prince Kozume.”

“Just Kenma is fine.”

“Kenma.”

Kenma looked up into Kuroo’s eyes. “Kuro.”

Kuroo smiled.

* * *

It took a few seconds for Kuroo to register that the magistrate had finished talking. Unhappily ripping his gaze away from Kenma’s, he pulled back the canopy and whispered into Kenma’s ear. “Follow my lead.”

Kenma glanced nervously at the now completely visible wedding guests and wondered how much trouble he would get into if he pulled the canopy back down over them. Kuroo took his hands and gave him a reassuring smile.

“My husband, Kenma.” Kuroo’s voice swept over the guests.

“My husband, Tetsurou.” Kenma’s voice drifted over the guests in front and the ones in the back only realized what had happened when others started cheering. Kenma took another glance out and got startled when Kuroo drew in to pull him into a tight hug. His own arms hung limp in surprise as the cheers got louder. He could see from over Kuroo’s shoulder that Kai and Yaku were shaking their heads and facepalming and it almost made him want to laugh. He let Kuroo guide him off the dais and away from the crowd, pulling back a curtain to reveal a cozy back room lavishly decorated in plush and equipped with a large central cushion. Kenma immediately made his way over to it and face planted down, wanting to curl up under safety blankets but the heat wouldn’t allow him indulgence in such comforts. Instead, he sat back up and curled his legs close, looking up at Kuroo.

“I’m sorry. I didn't follow your lead at the end."

Kuroo had gone straight to a low table ladened with food when they entered and he turned to look at Kenma, dumpling stuffed in his mouth. He shook his head and swallowed, looking embarrassed. "Ah..no...that was... Don't worry about it."

Kenma nodded. He was curious about the Nekoma princes' odd response to Kuroo's hug, but his growling stomach stopped any further inquiries.

Kuroo smiled and laid out a plate for him. "I know you're tired, but the bed will still be there after you eat."

Kenma looked back at the giant cushion as he sat down at the table. "That's a bed?"

"Ahh, kinda? I promise the bedrooms in the castle have full mattresses and your rooms have one with a bed frame because I know you're used to that in Karasuno." Kuroo could tell he was giving more information than the question asked for and stuffed his face to make himself stop. Kenma ducked his head down to hide his smile behind his hair. He was starting to feel relaxed for the first time since the ceremony started, but it ramped back up as, from the corner of his eye, he spotted Kuroo shedding layers.

"Ah, so it's for consummation?" Kenma asked in a soft voice.

Kuroo tried to reign in his faint blush as he rubbed the back of his head. "Um, if you want, I guess, but I'm too hungry to do anything..really..." He groaned and flopped back onto his pile of clothes. "Ahhh, why did they have to dress us up in so many layers when it's so hooot." He held up a fan and showed it to Kenma. "These things don't even help when it's this stuffy!"

Kenma let himself relax again by uncurling his legs. "I don't think the outside air is cooler."

"I'll find out after I eat." Kuroo filled both his and Kenma's plate, describing each dish as he went. "Once you're done resting in here, you can go back to the party outside."

"How long am I allowed to stay?" Kenma didn't know how to say that it would take him years to finish what Kuroo had given him and he knew he wouldn't be able to hide away from the kingdom for that long.

But Kuroo just shrugged. "We can stay as long as we want, but we should go out and see the party-goers sometime."

Kenma took it as being able to stay in until his guilty conscience forced him out. Content with his current state of affairs, he picked up his plate and went to rest on the bed, fishing out a tiny chess set from inside his robes to amuse himself with.

* * *

While the newlywed couple were eating, the courtyard had been transformed again. With the sun now fully set, translucent drapes replaced the thicker ones and allowed the partygoers a glimpse at the stars. Tetsurou had personally set up the seating arrangements and he was quite proud of his work. At the long table for the royals, he had placed a crow between every cat, so no one had any excuses to ignore their new treaty partners. Akaashi had personally requested the seat next to Kenma in advance, but now Tetsurou was tempted to bring Kenma's spot closer to his own in a last minute change, that wouldn't be the worst thing he had to talk himself down from doing. It was only unwillingness to stoop down to Akaashi-levels of pettiness that stopped him from banishing Kenma's guards' spots to the open-air buffet in the gardens. With only military officials and nobility seated inside the tent, he had full cause to, but Kenma had already warned him once. A part of him wanted it to happen again, so he could once again get a fleeting glance at those piercing eyes, but he didn't have much time to marvel at the blooming desire.

Once again equipped in his heavy layers of ornamental dress, he approached the royal table. He had been hoping to greet them officially with Kenma at his side, but the newest cat in the family told him to go on ahead alone, even after Tetsurou had stared at him with begging eyes. Kenma didn’t understand his telepathic message and Tetsurou had left to face the party alone.

Bowing before the Karasuno royals, Tetsurou spoke with a dramatic flourish. "Pleased to make your acquaintances, I am Kuroo Tetsurou, husband to Kozume Kenma, fifth price of Karasuno and the new first prince of Nekoma."

Prince Sugawara was all too happy to match his flair. He stood up and pointed a finger at Tetsurou, not quite able to keep his smile off his faux serious expression. "Marrying someone with dual princehood with your rank? Atrocious, what qualifications do you have?"

Prince Sawamura looked on with horror at his second in command, but Tetsurou understood why Yaku had taken such a liking to him. A hand on his chest, he sent Karasuno an ultimately failed attempt at a reassuring smile. “Rest assured, the kingdom convened and chose the best person for the job. I personally saw to it.” He gave them a wink.

“What if Kenma gets kidnapped and the kidnappers have a huge fortress and demand all of your money as ransom?” Guard Hinata had joined the game and now Prince Sawamura’s head was in his hands. His wink was most likely to blame for that, if Tetsurou was being honest with himself.

“I am the general of an army, little crow, kidnappers are no match for me.”

Guard Hinata gave an amazed squawk, that Kuroo hoped was a sign that his new husband's friend was warming up to him. Pleased with his introduction, he grinned at Prince Sawamura.

"Please tell the king that Nekoma has fulfilled all portions of the treaty. All we need from Karasuno is the general who will join our ranks. They will be my new second in command."

Prince Sawamura was the final voice on this matter, but the members of Karasuno looked at each other like they all had an equal say on the matter. Eventually Prince Sawamura smiled at Kuroo and said, "Let us revisit this matter tomorrow morning."

Kuroo returned his smile and left somewhat disappointed. He enjoyed the sight of the crows squabbling in public over which guards would stay with Kenma, but got to see none of that squabbling now. He was mentally kicking himself for underestimating the gravity of the request when Nekomata called him over.

The King of Nekoma sat on the edge of the royal table. Arguably Karasuno's biggest fan amongst Nekoma citizens, he had positioned himself furthest from Karasuno royalty so that those with less love for their treaty partners were forced closer and would hopefully talk and become friends. As it stood, most of the officials were already disappointed with Kuroo's performance and complaining to Nekomata about it instead of catering to their guests.

Kuroo greeted the magisters of Nekoma court with a bow and shook hands with them one by one, accepting their praise for agreeing to the treaty and congratulations on a spectacular wedding. They were all smiles, letting the king voice their criticisms. To their dismay, Nekomata merely smiled at him as well. "Be careful with our new cat, Tetsurou," he said. "Scout thoroughly before planning your attack. He'll make a fine prince in time, but not if you scare him off."

Kuroo bowed to his king. "Yes, your majesty."

He wasn't certain, but Kuroo would end up swearing that Nekomata's eyes opened just a little when he grinned. "Wonderful. Now go be a kid for the last day of your life," he said, shooing him off.

The magisters swarmed the king, letting Yaku and Kai take this moment to escape toward the crow side. Kuroo sighed and looked around, wondering just what to do for the rest of his wedding.

* * *

"Kenma!"

Kenma looked up to see Shouyou poking his head through the curtain hiding the festivities from view. His guilty conscience had arrived and he let him guide him out into the party.

"There are so many cool people here, one's a prince from Fukurodani, the kingdom that’s all the way on the other side of the sea from us! And I promised a few old ladies I would introduce you because they gave me sweets when I told them I knew you. Aheh, sorry, Kenma."

* * *

Tetsurou watched as Kenma’s guard slipped into their private chamber and pulled his husband out. “No one’s allowed in there except the wedded couple,” he grumbled.

Nekomata’s laughter kept him from marching over. “Let them be. Do you think the food was teleported there?”

Kuroo kept grumbling as an embarrassed Kenma got fussed over by the noble ladies of Nekoma. “He should’ve come here first.”

“He’s already met all of us in Karasuno.”

“Not Kai and Yaku.”

“They’re at the Karasuno table.”

Sure enough, Kenma and his new envoy made their way to the Karasuno side.

With no legitimate complaints left, Tetsurou officially got shooed off by the officials ordering him to greet his guests as well. He visited the nobles’ tables first, too distracted to properly receive them. Thankfully they found it amusing whenever Tetsurou would glance over to see what Kenma was doing. He managed to be patient when Kenma escaped into the room, but lost it when Guard Hinata followed him in again.

The nobles saw a passionate newlywed who couldn’t stand to be away from his spouse for long. Those who knew him better saw a force ready and willing to cause trouble. As Tetsurou marched over to the room, Yaku deployed Prince Sugawara who deployed Guard Tsukishima to block his way. He could feel Yaku’s eyes daring him to make a scene. As the blond stared down at him with a sickeningly fake smile, Tetsurou decided that he needed to greet the military officers as well and he let the matter go.

* * *

Tetsurou took a moment to step out into the garden and sighed as he sunk down into a bench. Around him were his guests who did not have enough status to secure a table underneath the canopy over the courtyard. Despite being more crowded, he was left alone to relax and watch the party in peace.

Much of the food had been eaten and people decided to mingle and dance. Kenma was doing his best to avoid dancing. The rest of Karasuno royalty had been dragged into Prince Sugawara’s plan to have everyone humiliate themselves on the dance floor. They formed a circle in the center and managed to attract Fukurodani royalty as well. While Kenma ran to his room, Prince Sawamura ran outside, bumping into Tetsurou.

With a hand on his heart, he bowed. “Good to see you again, Prince Kuroo.”

Tetsurou scrambled out of his slumped position on the bench. “Ah, yes, Prince Sawamura.” He stood up and regained his composure. “Not one for dancing?”

“I’m afraid I’m the worst amongst my family.”

Tetsurou could believe it. Every time Prince Sugawara had tried to show Prince Sawamura a dance move, he just stumbled along as stiff as a board. Smiling and holding out his hand, Tetsurou said, “That’s such a shame. I’m sure you’re exaggerating however. Mind if I witness?”

Prince Sawamura sighed good-naturedly and Tetsurou did not feel guilty about taking advantage of Prince Sawamura’s manners dictating him not to refuse a dance. He took Tetsurou’s hand and in an instant, they were spinning around. Tetsurou laughed as Prince Sawamura bumbled and followed him. He started laughing along too once he realized Tetsurou was an expert enough at dodging to keep his feet from being stepped on.

“Does this really count as dancing?” Prince Sawamura asked after a few minutes, out of breath and simply trying not to step on his own feet.

“It is if I want to tell my officials I actually danced at this party,” Tetsurou said, winking at Prince Sawamura.

He managed to get another laugh out of the prince. "I suppose I must thank you then."

Tetsurou smiled. "No need, really. We're family now, after all."

Prince Sawamura smiled in turn. "Aha, yes, of course."

They continued smiling cordially at each other, wondering just what the intentions of the other prince were.

* * *

Koushi picked Tanaka up from the ground where he and a Fukurodani prince were on their knees in front of Shimizu. “You’re lucky Daichi isn’t here to yell at you.”

Tanaka looked out into the gardens. “He’s too busy dancing.”

“What!?” Koushi whipped around until he spotted Daichi dancing with Kenma’s new husband. “Are you sure that’s dancing? They look like they’re going to kindly kill each other. Whew, what a scary aura.”

“Is that why Kenma keeps running away from him? I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.”

Koushi held Tanaka back. “That’s the last thing we need right now. Maybe we should leave Yamamoto in Nekoma.”

“Pardon me, I hope I’m not interrupting something.”

Koushi turned to see Prince Yaku standing with his squire at the edge of the dance circle. He pushed Tanaka away with a warning smile. “No, not at all. I’m sorry, some of my subjects are a little rowdy at parties.”

Prince Yaku grinned. “It’s nothing I haven’t seen from my own people. Case in point,” he said, gesturing to his squire. “Lev, this is the second prince of Karasuno. Prince Sugawara, my squire, Haiba Lev. His mother’s side is from Karasuno.”

“Oh!” Koushi looked up at the tall tree with hair even more silvery than his. “A pleasure to meet you.”

Squire Haiba smiled brightly, expression open and sincere. “You look just like my sister, Prince Sugawara. Is it too late to ask you to stay in Nekoma instead?”

Koushi gaped. Did Nekoma not want Kenma there? Should Koushi leave all of the guards with him?

“Lev, dismissed,” came Prince Yaku’s instant reaction.

Squire Haiba slinked off while Koushi was still blinking in disbelief. Prince Yaku sighed. “Sorry about him. He’s still green.”

“Haaah, how many fights does he cause with that innocent mouth of his?”

Prince Yaku shook his head. “Fortunately or unfortunately, I’m the main person he annoys. Regardless,” Prince Yaku said, clearing his throat, “I came here to ask for a dance.”

Koushi smiled and took Prince Yaku’s hands. “How good are you at dancing?”

“At the very least, I’m better than our first princes.”

“Haha.” They looked outside to see Daichi and Prince Kuroo still awkwardly spinning about. Koushi sent Daichi a cheeky smile and wave while Prince Yaku stuck out his tongue. Koushi laughed when Prince Kuroo returned the gesture.

* * *

“Yamamoto ended up scaring Kenma so bad, he dyed his hair. The rest of us only met him after The Great Dying Incident as Hinata calls it.”

Tetsurou laughed along to Prince Daichi’s latest story. He couldn’t see himself ever getting tired of hearing about their large family in Karasuno. “Is there anyone who isn’t a troublemaker?”

Prince Daichi sighed. “Maybe one, but he didn’t come on the trip.”

“Really? I’ve witnessed Prince Sugawara reprimand some of your crazier kids.”

“Don’t be fooled, he can be just as bad as the rest sometimes.” Prince Daichi caught a glimpse of something behind Tetsurou and started laughing. “Just as I expected.”

Tetsurou spun them to see Yaku and Prince Sugawara dancing gracefully and shooting them amused looks. Tetsurou stuck his tongue out and let go of Prince Daichi. “Now I’m too embarrassed to continue.”

Tetsurou could tell Prince Daichi didn’t quite believe him, but he let him go nonetheless and Tetsurou almost bounded back to the private room. He hadn’t spotted Kenma all throughout his spinning with Prince Daichi and the Karasuno guards were too preoccupied with Prince Sugawara’s dance circle. Unfortunately for him, he was faced with disappointment when he entered the room.

* * *

With the party in full swing and most people mingling about on the castle grounds, the only ones available to listen to him complain were Prince Bokuto and Keiji. Prince Kuroo wallowed next to where they had stolen Nekoma seats at the royal table, resting his chin amongst tea cups..

“Ah man, did you get dumped already?” teased Prince Bokuto.

Prince Kuroo lifted his head, eyes unfocused. “He was scared when I went to hug him.” Keiji couldn’t tell if he was speaking to Prince Bokuto or himself, but Prince Bokuto took it as a continuation.

“You went off script! What was with that face cradling thing anyway? And I know if no one was there, you would have removed more than just his cloak.”

If it was with anyone else, Keiji would have been a bit concerned about Prince Bokuto’s callousness, but he had long gotten used to his prince’s unique way of consoling his friend.

Prince Kuroo glared at Prince Bokuto, only half ready to play along with Prince Bokuto’s games. “He’s pretty anxious about contact. I’m going to give him some space.”

“That’s cause he enjoys watching people from a distance,” Prince Bokuto loudly whispered to Keiji.

Prince Kuroo pushed Prince Bokuto, a half-affronted, half-amused look on his face. “Hey, keep calling me a perv all you want, but I’m not the one who asked the Karasuno princess to ‘punish me,’ whatever that means.”

Prince Bokuto grew defensive. “The bald Karasuno general was asking for it first and it looked like fun! Don’t you have dreams of being dominated by a dark-haired beauty?”

Prince Bokuto had given Keiji the perfect set up, however wittingly, and now it was Keiji’s turn to deliver the final blow in the operation ‘Cheer Up Prince Pain in the Ass.’ He looked on blankly as he said, “Are you sure she’s even in your league, Prince Bokuto?”

With Prince Bokuto wailing, Prince Kuroo snickering, and Prince Bokuto yelling at him for laughing, Keiji officially filed it away as a success.

* * *

Kenma finally managed to find a secret corner Shouyou couldn’t discover him in. He had been willing to follow him around at first because he believed Suga had sent him on a mission to introduce Kenma to everyone important he needed to greet. It became apparent quickly that Shouyou didn’t know who anyone was and got pulled into just about everyone’s request to meet the new prince and converse for however long they wanted. Kenma had only worked up enough energy to deal with Nekoma officials and he quickly ran out after the first round of introductions with the nobles. It didn’t help that he had to keep rescuing Shouyou from getting his cheeks pinched. They sought refuge back at the Karasuno table until Kenma noticed the Nekoma princes were visiting. He could only manage cursory greetings before he fled back into his room to recharge.

But lying down on the cushion bed wasn’t as much of a respite as he hoped. He still felt a little queasy from the trip, completely unused to the heat, ready to shrink under the weight of all of the eyes on him, and unable to get rid of his headache. He only made eye contact with Prince Yaku once, but it instantly reminded him that Nekoma had offered their first prince for the alliance, their primary king candidate. Meanwhile, Karasuno had sent Kenma, their most recent prince appointee, the person that would be missed the least.

Kenma sighed and curled up tighter in his new hiding spot. Every step of the way, it looked like Nekoma was more devoted to their alliance, even though Karasuno had been the ones begging for it. Less than half of Karasuno’s royal family made the trip and they planned to leave after one day. The Karasuno officials cried exploitation when Nekoma demanded they send over people from both the military and governing branches. The most Karasuno was willing to do was send over their first and second princes and princesses before leaving immediately to handle the consequences of the alliance back home. The only people left would be him, Shouyou, Tobio, and either Taketora or Ryuu. He was glad he wasn’t the one who needed to make a choice between them, they both had sisters in Karasuno they couldn’t bear to part with.

While he had been shuffled around by the nobles, he had heard a rumor that the Nekoma king specifically wanted him to come to Nekoma. Shouyou had looked at him proudly, but Kenma knew it was just a pitying attempt to make him feel welcome. He could easily tell how terrible a choice he was for Nekoma in comparison to the rest of the royal family. He had been watching Kuro’s and Daichi’s interactions and from what he had seen, they wouldn’t have minded getting married. It would have been a very strong alliance between the two kingdoms compared to Kenma’s relatively little influence in Karasuno politics. If Kuro wanted raw power, Daichi or Yui would have been the best choice. If he wanted political power, then Suga would have been the wisest choice. If he wanted the hearts of the Karasuno people, Kiyoko would have been perfect. A desperate part of him hoped Kuro would recognize that and choose someone else at the party. He doesn’t want to taint Karasuno’s reputation any further with his own lack of willingness to be in the spotlight. He doesn’t want Nekoma to look at Kenma’s behavior and Karasuno’s early departure tomorrow morning and think Karasuno wasn’t invested in this arrangement.

Kenma repeated his convictions to himself as he made he way through the crowd to officially meet with his new family in Nekoma. As he weaved through, whispers followed him about how he had been avoiding his own reception, how flighty he seemed, slacking off, slipping away. Before they could overwhelm him, he reached a table and clutched onto its edges, vision blurry. He was doing his best to keep his stomach at bay when he looked up and saw Prince Yaku.

Prince Yaku and his squire came over to Kenma, faces full of concern. “Are you alright?” his squire asked. Kenma nodded and put on his best unaffected mask.

The squire believed him and Prince Yaku didn’t look like he was going to pry. He stood ramrod straight and greeted Kenma cordially. “Prince Kenma,” he said with a smile.

Kenma nodded in turn. “Third prince of Nekoma, Yaku Morisuke.”

“What’s Prince Kenma’s rank now that he’s in Nekoma?” the squire piped up. Kenma looked up at the tallest and skinniest person he ever met, the apparently infamous Haiba Lev. He knew Squire Haiba had managed to earn many a knights’ ire, but he never found out exactly why. The only thing he could think now looking up at him was that if he cut off some of his vertical height and attached it to his sides, he would get Kuro.

“Both Kuroo and Kenma are first princes of Nekoma now,” said Yaku.

“Then what’s Prince Kuroo’s in Karasuno?”

Kenma averted his gaze. They hadn’t really planned on giving Kuro anything in Karasuno and he wasn’t keen on admitting it out loud. “Uh…”

Squire Haiba interrupted him before he could get a word out. “Ah, but I guess that doesn’t matter cause Prince Kenma and Prince Kuroo will be spending the rest of their lives in Nekoma.”

Prince Yaku hit his squire for talking over Kenma. Kenma tried to reassure them that there was no transgression, but Prince Yaku spoke over him, looking sternly at Squire Haiba. “Lev! He outranks you!”

“Oh, no, I don’t care about that. It’s okay,” Kenma said.

Squire Haiba held the spot where Prince Yaku hit him and said, “Doesn’t he outrank you too now?”

Prince Yaku’s eyes looked murderous as he turned to Kenma and asked, “How would you like to punish him?”

“It’s unnecessary.”

Squire Haiba brightened up at that and beamed at Kenma. Kenma averted his gaze, but he didn’t seem to mind. “You’re going to have a great time in Nekoma! They’ve already prepared your rooms. I can show you. Wait, tonight, should I take you to your rooms or Prince Kuroo’s?”

Kenma flushed and glanced over to where Kuro had collapsed at a table.

Prince Yaku and Squire Haiba followed his gaze, sighing at the sight. Squire Haiba continued on, earnestly attempting yet failing to reassure Kenma. “Don’t worry, Prince Kuroo is generally far more serious, he won’t joke around when it comes to that stuff.” He gave Kenma a thumbs up, causing Prince Yaku to groan. Kenma pulled a face, not really sure how to get Squire Haiba to avoid the topic altogether and unfortunately he was willing to carry the conversation himself. “I’ve heard it hurts a lot though, if you’re the smaller one.”

“Lev, I really doubt this is the time.”

“But this is important, Prince Yaku! I’ve heard that Prince Kuroo has some interesting tastes and I think Prince Kenma should be warned beforehand.”

“This isn’t a subject you can casually speak about the first time you meet someone!”

“But Prince Kenma doesn’t mind like you do! Right, Prince-” Prince Yaku and Squire Haiba emerged from their back and forth to find themselves alone.

Prince Yaku hit his squire. “You scared him away!”

* * *

Kenma grabbed onto Shouyou’s arm, mentally apologizing to everyone he snubbed, and told him he had had enough of the party. Shouyou only needed one look at his face and suddenly everyone from Karasuno was mobilized around him, shielding him from curious eyes.

Inside the encirclement, Shouyou offered him a cup of water. “Are you okay?” Kenma looked at the backs of his family members, all listening intently but pretending they were merely mingling. He was going to miss them when they left.

“Do you know where we’ll be staying?”

Ryuu glanced at him for a moment and whispered, “Tell me who did it and I promise-”

“No. I’m just…” Kenma trailed off, too tired to even continue talking. “Please take me to my room.”

* * *

Ornate double doors encrusted with gold opened up to two sitting rooms and a bedroom, covered in carpet. Each room had wall spanning windows with several layers of curtains. Shouyou hopped around Kenma’s rooms, crowing at the bookshelves and testing out every couch and chair. Kenma went immediately to his bed, a heavily decorated four poster with a canopy.

Shouyou let down the curtains and went to do the same to Kenma’s canopy, but Kenma pulled him into his bed. “Guard me in here.” Shouyou fidgeted in his armor, but couldn’t say no to Kenma’s begging expression. Kenma was asleep by the time Shouyou settled down next to him and to his surprise, he had run around enough that day that sleep came easily to him as well.

* * *

Kei peeked past Prince Kenma’s canopy to reveal a Hinata still in full armor, sprawled all over the bed and Prince Kenma ready to fall of the edge. He pulled back the curtains and yanked Hinata’s eyes open. “Get up before you get into trouble.”

Hinata flailed around before jumping up into attack formation. “Kenma’s still sleeping!”

Kei cleared his throat. “Prince Kenma, we’re preparing to leave soon.”

Like a leisurely cat, Prince Kenma stretched and yawned, shuffling into his sitting room with his full wedding outfit and bed hair. Hinata shuffled in behind him, clothing and hair equally as messy.

Prince Suga lifted an eyebrow. “We didn’t expect your wedding night to go like this.”

Prince Kenma sunk into a couch and threatened to fall asleep again. Hinata only looked sheepish about sleeping in after Kageyama berated him about it.

“We need to leave before the sun gets too high. Everyone, at attention!” came Prince Daichi’s loud voice, snapping everyone’s spines straight.

Prince Kenma’s sleepy eyes shot open and they grew sharp as he glanced at Generals Tanaka and Yamamoto. “Who’s staying with me?”

“You’ll choose your guards,” Princess Kiyoko said, even as Hinata and Kageyama stepped forward. Prince Kenma nodded at Hinata and he cheered. Kageyama fidgeted, trying not to seem overly excited about the prospect of staying in Nekoma. They were the only excited ones. Everyone else looked at the ground or any other direction that would keep them from making eye contact with one of the generals. They had yet to make with a decision on who to sacrifice. Both had intensely loyal troops, close friends amongst the royalty, a shot of becoming royalty themselves, and sisters who had also enlisted. Kei saw Prince Kenma glance up at the generals for a brief moment. He had his own preference for who he wished would stay with him, but Kei knew he wouldn’t say anything, he was too self-sacrificing to influence such a crucial decision.

But Prince Kenma didn’t need to speak up. General Yamamoto stood up and slammed a hand onto the prince’s back. “I can’t leave you behind, Kenma! Besides, Ryuu sucks at cooking good Karasuno food. We can’t have you starving if you hate Nekoma cuisine.”

General Yamamoto’s sister was young, barely a new recruit amongst their troops. General Tanaka’s on the other hand was older than him and a general in her own right. If one General Tanaka left, the other could easily merge her troops with his. But it was General Yamamoto that had the closer relationship to Prince Kenma. Before they rose to their respective ranks, Officer Yamamoto was General Kenma’s trump card and closest confidante.

Prince Kenma smiled softly up at his friend. “Thanks, Tora.”

* * *

Only Karasuno was present as everyone boarded the carriages. The sunrise hit Taketora’s face as he watched his friends prepare to leave, and it only served to make him even more sentimental. Kenma told him he spent 5 minutes crying with Tanaka even though it felt like hours. He entrusted Tanaka with letters for both Noya and his sister as well as failed to convince Tsukki to send letters to him. Kenma was more quiet with his goodbyes, quiet as Suga and Daichi wished him good luck. That’s all they could offer him before they left and part of Taketora felt like Kenma was getting abandoned. He heard from Noya that when news came of Nekoma’s stipulations for the alliance, Kenma volunteered before anyone could make their unwillingness known. Taketora was getting ripped from his home, his family, and his friends. But Kenma never had much in the way of family and friends. Karasuno was merely where he lived, not his home. The most Taketora could do was make sure his friends at least followed him into Nekoma.

He slung his arm around Kenma’s shoulders as they waved goodbye. Kenma pushed him off, but stayed close to him regardless. They headed back once Kenma started nodding off against his shoulder. Taketora watched from the corner of his eye as Nekoma guards patrolled around them, but left them alone. It surprised him that they hadn’t been assigned Nekoma security detail throughout the entirety of their time here, but he didn’t particularly care. He, Hinata, and Kageyama were all the security necessary to keep Kenma safe.

They walked back through the courtyard, the open space completely devoid of any remnants of the party held only yesterday. Taketora was impressed; Nekoma staff really worked fast. He bumped into a still Kenma and followed his gaze to spot Prince Kuroo sparring with Fukurodani’s Prince Bokuto. He had earned a little respect from Tanaka at the party for being a fellow Kiyoko worshipper, but Taketora wasn’t convinced. He believed Prince Bokuto was in it for the fun of prostration, not for his pure love for the princess. He stood there, arms crossed and shaking his head at him as Hinata made excited noises that caught Prince Kuroo’s attention. Taketora begrudgingly admitted to himself that the prince looked cool when he blocked Prince Bokuto’s attack with one hand and waved to Kenma with the other. Kenma simply gave him a small bow in return and headed inside.

Taketora snagged Kenma before he could go far past the doorway and pointed out toward an enamored Hinata cooing as he watched the fight.

“You’re free to go watch,” Kenma called out to him.

Hinata whooped and instantly ran off. Kageyama stuck close to Kenma, envy evident on his face. “Hey, don’t abandon your duties!”

“You can go too.” Kageyama automatically stepped forward to go before remembering himself and turning to ask Kenma for confirmation. Taketora stared at his empty hand. Even though he had been holding onto him, Kenma had already disappeared.

* * *

‘It’s smaller than Karasuno,’ thought Kenma as he spent the next few hours exploring Nekoma castle. There were a lot of secret compartments in the hallways he could hide in to avoid any palace staff. He hadn’t planned on learning the internal infrastructure of his new home today, he just wanted to return to his rooms and go to sleep, but the path was more confusing than he expected and he was too embarrassed about still being in his wedding clothes to ask anyone for help.

He was peeking around a corner to watch a maid retreat when a hand tapped his shoulder. Kenma jumped into the air and was so startled that someone had managed to sneak up on him that he just stared up at them. The butler that surprised him stared down at him with unsettlingly unblinking eyes and wordlessly handed him a cookie on a handkerchief. The icing on it read ‘Welcome to Nekoma.’

“Oh, thank you.” The butler pointed to his name on his handkerchief. “Fukunaga. Thank you very much. It looks delicious.” The butler smiled at him and Kenma couldn’t help but smile back.

“Kenmaaaa!” Shouyou shouted as he barrelled down the hallway toward him. “What are you doing here?”

“I was talking to-” Kenma looked around, but the butler had already disappeared. Hinata cocked his head when Kenma looked back at him. “Nothing, what’s going on?” he asked as they were joined by Kageyama, Kuro, and two people Kenma only knew as ‘really cool people from Fukurodani’ (Shouyou’s words).

“We’re going to get breakfast!”

“Have you eaten yet?” Kuro asked him. “Cookies don’t really count.”

Kenma looked down at the cookie in his hands. “No, this was a recent gift.”

Shouyou picked it up and admired it. “Woah, so cool, Kenma! You have fans already!”

“Ah...not really…” Kenma’s time hiding in the hallways let him gather enough evidence to counter that point. Not that they were particularly negative, but anyone who whispered about him hadn't anything positive to say about the arrangement. The fact that he and Kuro were barely seen together during the wedding didn’t help either. The prince had a lot of fans amongst his staff that were passionate about him marrying someone else.

Kuro raised an eyebrow at the cookie. “Looks like Fukunaga’s work. You got a personal gift from the head butler. Congratulations.”

Shouyou beamed. “See! Fans!”

“Not a fan…” Kenma mumbled as he looked away.

Shouyou’s stomach growled and he took Kenma’s hand. “Let’s go eat. If we wait any longer, I’ll eat your cookie.”

Kenma held it protectively against his chest as he let Shouyou lead them. From the corner of his eye he noticed Kuro staring at their interlocked hands and squeezed out of spite. He squeezed too hard and Shouyou squawked, complaining about the pain.

This alerted Kageyama who slammed a palm onto Shouyou’s head. “What are you doing, guiding our prince around like he’s a lost child?”

“Ow, ow, owww, quit it, Kageyamaaaa!”

He stood in front of Kenma and bowed. “Please excuse his behavior, Prince Kozume.” Kenma just sighed; this was only delaying breakfast further.

“It’s okay, Kageyama. You don’t have to be so formal.” He had only brief interactions with the scary looking guard in the past. From Shouyou’s complaints, he’d learned the man was very by the book and often annoyed Shouyou with his strictness. The only reason he was fine with Kageyama staying was his synergy with Shouyou. But even after a full day around them, Kageyama hadn’t latched onto Kenma’s unorthodox and informal way of doing things.

“Th-then, please allow me to carry your things!” Kenma flinched back away from Kageyama, decided he would also need to get used to his new guard’s gungho method of doing things, and looked down at his only possession, the solitary wrapped cookie.

“Oh, uh, okay.” He handed it over and turned back to Shouyou. “Lead the way.”

“Yeah!” Shouyou leaped forward before instantly swiveling on his heel and looking at Kageyama. “Do you remember where it is?” he whispered.

Kenma turned away while Kageyama yelled at Shouyou once again and looked at the entourage behind him. Kuro was smirking at the display and the Fukurodani denizens were making faces at each other. “Can you please guide us?”

The white haired one slipped to the front of their party, patting Shouyou’s head as he went. “Don’t worry, Shrimpy, I’ll be your knight in shining armor.”

“Uaaah, Prince Bokuto!” Shouyou fawned after him.

They walked at a leisurely pace as Prince Bokuto regaled them with a personal play by play of how he defeated Kuro that morning. Kuro only grumbled about how he had Akaashi with him while Yaku didn’t wake up today. He was more focused on Kenma’s hands. Kenma watched him as he eyed their hands and then Kenma’s open hand. Kuro inched subtly closer and Kenma immediately snatched up Kageyama’s hand, startling the poor man. Shouyou looked positively gleeful at the addition and starts to swing his and Kenma’s hands, skipping all the while. He and Kenma stared at Kageyama, who looked utterly confused and slowly began swinging their hands too. Kenma began skipping as well and Kageyama was even more bewildered. Kenma glanced at Kuro laughing quietly behind him and then froze. Kageyama had also attempted to match Shouyou’s cheerful smile and somehow ended up pulling his muscles into a menacing grimace. Shouyou was paralyzed next to him in fear and all Kenma could hear was Kuro guffawing in the background.

* * *

Taketora waved to them when they entered the dining hall. He stood by a long table next to the wall and was filling plates full of food. Nekoma servants stood nearby, chatting as they ate. All along the walls Kenma spotted bread, fruits, and pastries he’d never seen before. One table sat unoccupied in the center, the only one equipped with chairs.

Prince Bokuto was on the food in an instant and took the first seat at the center table. Kuro sat nearby and subtly pushed out the chair next to him. After accepting a plate from Taketora, Kenma walked past that chair and sat on the opposite end of the table. Guards in Fukurodani colors ate standing next to Taketora, but Kenma told Shouyou and Kageyama to sit next to him. Shouyou oohed and awed at the height of the ceiling and for once Kageyama didn’t tell him to quiet down because the other princes were out of earshot.

* * *

Several guards moved toward Kenma to protest the presence of non-royals at the royal table, but Tetsurou gave them a look and told them to let their new guests be. The Karasuno general had managed to get the hang of the seating arrangement, but Tetsurou wasn’t willing to rid Kenma of his moral support, even if he secretly wanted to witness the fire in Kenma’s eyes again.

He ended up spending all of breakfast watching Kenma from the corner of his eye. Bokuto and Akaashi kept giving each other silent looks until Bokuto got quiet enough that Akaashi finally leaned in toward Tetsurou and asked him why Kenma was ignoring him. Had they not enjoyed their time together last night? Bokuto leaned in as well, commenting on how refreshed he had been while they were sparring that morning. Not that it made much of a difference, he still got his ass handed to him by Fukurodani’s one and only master swordman.

Akaashi held up a hand to interrupt Bokuto. “Did you hurt him?

Bokuto’s piercing owl eyes were on Tetsurou in an instant. Tetsurou held his hands up and attempted to defend himself from scrutinizing owl eyes. “Of course not, I would never.” He looked around and leaned in closer. “I never went to Kenma’s room,” he whispered.

Bokuto threw his head back and laughed. “Why? I thought you were looking forward to it.”

Tetsurou blushed and dragged Bokuto’s head back into their little huddle. “I don’t understand how you’re so casual about discussing this in the open.” He glanced at Kenma to check if he heard Bokuto’s outburst. “Besides, he’s a bit shy and I don’t really-”

Bokuto started choking on his food and Tetsurou pat his back a bit harder than he should have.

Akaashi frowned. “You think it’s shyness? When he ignored you at the wedding as well as the seat you pulled out for him? He’s made friends with your butler but is actively being unpleasant to you.”

Tetsurou shook his head. “No no, you’re reading him all wrong. He’s a very quiet person in a new place all alone without his family. He’s a bit scared.”

Yaku set his plate down next to Tetsurou and sat in the pushed-out chair. “You know, Lev scared him last night.” Frowning at Tetsurou’s plate, he said, “Who eats fish for breakfast, you old man.” Tetsurou moved to say something, but Yaku stopped him with a hand. “Don’t want to hear it. But about Lev… he wouldn’t shut up about how painful consummation was supposed to be and Kenma ran away.”

“Where did he get that dumb idea?” Tetsurou muttered to himself. “Well sure, if certain things are painful for Kenma, there’s no need to, I’m fine with anything. I’d be quite happy to…” he trailed off. Bokuto made hooting sounds as he grew red until he finally stood up with a loud scrape of his chair that caught everyone’s attention. “I’m going to go clear things up with Kenma.”

“Yeah, get it, Kuroo!”

“Shut up!” he whisper-hissed at Bokuto.

Tetsurou approached Kenma’s chair and smiled his nicest smile. “Good morning. I was wondering if you’d be interested in a tour around the castle or city. It would be best to get you acquainted with your new home as soon as possible.” Kenma turned toward him and blinked. “We at Nekoma hope to…” Tetsurou trailed off as Kenma scrunched up his nose and made a disgusted face. He was silent as Kenma quickly hid his expression and dug into his piles of wedding robes to give Tetsurou a small candy.

“It’s a treat from Karasuno. For after breakfast.” Kenma gave him a small bow and left the room. The room watched him leave before it turned its attention back to a Tetsurou checking his breath. He sank into despair and Yaku laughed clear across the room.

“It’s your own fault for making the chefs prepare garlic fish so early in the morning!”

Tetsurou slowly made his way back to his seat. “I keep ruining things each time,” he mumbled.

“Prince Kozume displays his emotions clear on his face. Why are you so earnestly chasing after someone who has shown you no interest in turn?” said Akaashi.

Bokuto gasped. “You’re being too negative, Akaashi.”

Tetsurou sat down with a huff. “He’s my husband, I can’t abandon him. But I could have come off too strong. I should start by simply being friends first. I have time. Yeah, it’ll be fine…”

Bokuto poked Tetsurou’s red cheek. “You’ve got a crush~” he sang and Tetsurou blocked his poking by stuffing his face into his hands. Bokuto moved to poke his red ears instead.

Yaku joined in, laughing. “Watch him create a ten-stage plan to woo Kenma. What kind of teenager has this kind of patience?”

Tetsurou swatted Bokuto and Yaku away. “I’m twenty-two!” He stood up, patted himself down, steeled himself a serious expression, and stalked out of the room.

“Where are you going?” Yaku shouted after him.

“To kill Lev.”

**Author's Note:**

> [Teaser art depicting a future scene](https://yainedraws.tumblr.com/post/168372466007) by [yainedraws](https://yainedraws.tumblr.com)


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